_________________"Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson were and are the dynamic duo. They're the one-two punch. They're all the clich�s possible to describe people that perfectly complement each other, who make each other better and also bring out the best in the team." �Karen Bryant

Upsets can happen, and at least there's some crossover between the halves with the way they've set up the system, but a Spain-USA semi-final looks pretty damn likely. Bit more competition on the opposite side.

Hope everyone's booked theirr accommodation already. It was starting to look like rat trap or pretty expensive, without much inbetween, last time I checked.

Upsets can happen, and at least there's some crossover between the halves with the way they've set up the system, but a Spain-USA semi-final looks pretty damn likely. Bit more competition on the opposite side.

It's not a great seeding system IMO if it doesn't pave the way for a 1 vs 2 gold medal game.

Richyyy wrote:

Hope everyone's booked theirr accommodation already. It was starting to look like rat trap or pretty expensive, without much inbetween, last time I checked.

they bombed out in EuroBasket, losing to Greece in the quarterfinals and failing to qualify.

Wow , my have times changed. Russia was one of the Big 3 when i was growing up . US , Aussies & Russians were the teams that put fear in my heart come Olympic time. Seems Russia has been replaced by spain , but there not that competitive on the US level .

Hope everyone's booked theirr accommodation already. It was starting to look like rat trap or pretty expensive, without much inbetween, last time I checked.

Oh crap

For what it's worth, I had another look today via a different website or two and there are still plenty of options should anyone want to join us in sunny Tenerife in September.

One thing I would mention - if looking at flights, don't get locked in to searching for ones to the North airport. The games are on the north side, but there are an awful lot more flights into the South airport (at least there are from where I'm coming from). So I'll almost certainly fly in to the South and then get transport across, which I woud expect will also be the easiest route for a lot of other people.

they bombed out in EuroBasket, losing to Greece in the quarterfinals and failing to qualify.

Wow , my have times changed. Russia was one of the Big 3 when i was growing up . US , Aussies & Russians were the teams that put fear in my heart come Olympic time. Seems Russia has been replaced by spain , but there not that competitive on the US level .

Things just haven't been the same for the Russian NT ever since Becky Hammonova retired.

Team USA could win their group with their "D" team. Consisting of Sydney Colson, Rachel Banham, Marissa Coleman, Dearica Hamby & Jennifer Hamson.

It's true, though you could have posted that yesterday, before the groups had been determined, and it would have been no less true.

Seriously. There are two, maybe three countries in the world that can actually give the United States a game for a full forty minutes. Unless all three of them end up in the same group as the US, whichever group the US ends up in is going to be a "joke."

Interesting exhibition game in China as the hosts beat Belgium 65-48. Belgium had their best available lineup and Meesseman had 25 points. China was a little different than the group that toured the United States and did not have Shao Ting.

Interesting exhibition game in China as the hosts beat Belgium 65-48. Belgium had their best available lineup and Meesseman had 25 points. China was a little different than the group that toured the United States and did not have Shao Ting.

Is Wauters 100% healthy and was she playing

_________________"Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson were and are the dynamic duo. They're the one-two punch. They're all the clich�s possible to describe people that perfectly complement each other, who make each other better and also bring out the best in the team." �Karen Bryant

Interesting exhibition game in China as the hosts beat Belgium 65-48. Belgium had their best available lineup and Meesseman had 25 points. China was a little different than the group that toured the United States and did not have Shao Ting.

Is Wauters 100% healthy and was she playing

Wauters is with them on the trip, but she has not played in either game.

Jazmon Gwathmey getting waived has helped them integrate her into the lineup for when the big games begin.

The quirks of international basketball - flying four hours to the edge of Africa to watch multiple games featuring a team that revolves around Jazmon Gwathmey.

Is there any point to some of these preliminary squads that have been announced? Surely Spain are going to find room to add Ndour (and France for Miyem)? Not like Spain have a host of alternatives for that naturalised spot, or a clutch of top-tier posts blocking her way.